Nature Journal :Garden Observing

This could be potentially embarrassing... but I used to fantasize about being a Charlotte Mason homeschool mom...
Picture it... frolicking in a meadow of soft wildflowers and tall grasses...  wearing a straw hat and long sundress no less...sitting on bear size, sun warmed rocks watching your children paint the scenery with water colors.
Then heading home to read interesting books... and gather fascinating tidbits about the nature you were just submersed it... Everybody excited to learn.

Experience has fortunately burst that bubble for me... crying children on a trail in a near by provincial park with a disobedient dog and a stroller can knock the serene right out of you.

I have held on to a love for nature journals though... they are just so pretty... and the idea makes me think of calm... so we march on with nature journals...

I'm going to share a few printables that are working well for us right now as we observe the seedlings we are starting on the window sill.

1. A calendar

 
This allows us to record so many things:

• how long it has taken each plant to sprout.
• which plant sprouted first.
• how old each plant is
• when second leaves began to grow

2. A Journal Page

My children are experimenting with some kitchen seeds... so they ave decided to pay especially close attention to the apple seeds planted in the peet pucks.

3. Recording Observations Page

I love this page... Space to draw and write observations... reminds us to date our work (I'm quite bad at remembering that) and each square is small enough to not be intimidating.

Do you have any favorite nature journal printables or resources? 

Chiming in about Writing...

Meadows Journal

Writing is something I want my children to love...  there is nothing quite like the perfectly written message in a card... or creating an outrageous and adventurous new land in a story.

Alas it is rare that my fantasy life and my real life actually line up... in our home writing was one of those subjects that was met with groans and occasionally tears... but it has gotten better... Here's how:

1. We stopped using a writing/ spelling program...

2. We started daily journaling with prompts (I hope to phase out the need for prompts in the future).
Here are a few ideas:

Write about a book character you would like to meet.	What is something you love about yourself?	Write about something that drives you crazy.	If you could be in a cartoon which cartoon would you be in?	Choose one of your toys and pretend it can talk. What would it say?
Do you think a monkey would make a good pet? Why?	Write about a dream you remember?	Write about the best birthday you've ever had.	If you made supper what would you make?	Write about how to be a good friend.

3. I only allow myself to correct 2 things in a writing piece... usually a misplaced capital or period.

4. We do Mad Libs which is a super fun way to practice parts of speech.

5. I am choosing to believe that an avid reader will become a capable speller.

6. Hudson has a pen pal and that has been a super fun non threatening way to get him to write.

7. We play classical music... it's calming and it gets the creative juices flowing.

As the weather warms up I hope to take our writing outdoors and introduce more poetry...

What do you do to encourage your children to love writing?